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The First Domino
Buzzkill says, "Kickback, I would like to speak with you at your earliest convienience." Buzzkill says, "/Alone./" Kickback says, "As you wish, ma'am." The grumpiest Insecticon sits behind her desk in the workshop, datapads containing all sorts of science-y stuff stacked on one side, various body parts from some poor unfortunate soul piled on the other. She sits hunched over a set of blueprints she's currently drafting, furiously drawing hexagons all over it as she awaits Kickback's arrival. She has much to speak with him about, or so she says. Kickback arrives shortly after, polished to perfection and bearing an unusually smug smile. "Yes, M'lady?" he asks, saccharine sweet. Buzzkill shoves her hexagon-laden blueprints aside when Kickback enters and looks up, eyeing him with a steely glare. "Kickback, I'm glad you came. Please sit." She motions to the space on the other side of her desk where a chair would be except there isn't anything there. "...Or stand, I suppose. I don't care either way." She rests her elbows on the desk and steeples her fingers, cold gaze never wavering. "So... I heard you and Scorn had a little spar the other day. Care to tell me what happened exactly?" Well, this is an interesting line of questioning. "Yes, at her request, I participated in a sparring exercise with Scorn." His antennae lift an inch, like eyebrows raised in surprise. "It was fairly straightforward; we simply engaged one another in combat until one of us capitulated." He sighs through spiracle vents along his legs and sides. "Admittedly I underestimated her a bit; there's always a bit of risk when you're engaging an opponent for the first time. I metered back my responses in order to observe her full capacities and she managed to come out on top." "I see.." Buzzkill just /stares/ at Kickback for an uncomfortably long time before the corners of her mouth tug upwards in the slightest hint of a smile. "I heard she bested you. This time. " The honey bee pushes herself away from the desk and stands, slowly stepping around it until she's standing beside her fellow purple-and-black Insecticon. "Scorn is a bit of a trickster. She lures you in with her..." She struggles to find the word. "..'charming' personality, bringing your gaurd down and then striking you when you expect it the least." It sounds like Buzzkill has some experience with this. "That is why I am going to help you, train you to make you stronger, crueler." She folds her arms behind her back and stands as tall as she can (which is just barely as tall as Kickback himself is.) "Now that you outrank her, it's only a matter of time before she comes after you and tries to take your place in hopes she can claw her way back to the top." Gliding in, whether welcome or not, Buzzsaw banks sharply upon clearing the door to settle himself on a comfortable perch at the end of one of the workshop tables. Wings folded, engines whining softly as they power down, the condor's optics scan the place for the usual. Malingerers, slackers, and verifiable wounded. Hmm... His gaze settles on Kickback and Buzzkill. Well, this is certainly something worth watching, at the very least. When are the insecticons /not/ entertaining? Kickback walks over to a chair intended for a tech sitting at a workbench, settling himself into it. His elbows drop to the armrests as he brings his hands together, interlacing his fingers, head canted downwards. "Scorn is as transparent as glass," he ascertains with a certain air of casual authority on the subject. His antennae settle into a lazy loop from the top of his head slightly forward. "Buzzkill," he begins, dropping any niceties of title or address to a superior, preparing to offer the honeybee a glance behind the facade he wears for everyone else, "How well do you believe you know me? Let's start with that question, because I do want to understand what it is you have to offer me in knowledge concerning Scorn." "I know as much about you as the history books tell," Buzzkill starts, working her way back to her side of the desk and setting her stripey butt in the seat. "I did not have the honour of knowing you and your 'brothers' when you were alive. It was only after Galvatron took command of the Decepticons that I came to Earth and became one of you. When I learned I was to join your ranks, I did as much reading as I could on the three of you but alas, the writers of history have not been kind in that regard." She frowns her typical Buzzkill frown. "They make you out to be nothing but pawns, and sometimes worse, traitors to the Empire and Megatron but I know there is more to it than that. I know the strength and cunning the Insecticons are capable of." She leans back in her chair and crosses her arms over her chest. "As for what I know about you /personally?/ I admit, very little. That is another reason I wanted to have this private talk with you." Private? Obviously she in unaware of Buzzsaw's presence. "I think we could be strong allies given the chance." Buzzsaw is content to keep his presence as low-key as possible. Crimson optics narrow faintly, auditory processors recording right alongside his visual receptors. Things certainly are turning into something...interesting. The condor even goes through the trouble of turning his electronic signature suppression systems on as he smirks inwardly. Seems some sort of a game has manifested itself in his mind, and he thoroughly intends to entertain himself with it. Kickback smiles slightly. "The history books tell the story they should. History is written by the victors, after all, and sometimes it's better to be underestimated and forgotten than to have your full capacity known." "We three had always operated under a veil of independence bordering on treachery because that was what was necessary for us: Plausible deniability, if you will. We learned to function as individuals and as a unified front. You are well aware of our capacity to become super-organisms through cloning and the hive mind, I have no need to tell you what is possible for us in that regard," he continues. "Shrapnel and Bombshell were always physically stronger, blessed with gifts I was not, so they always came to the forefront. We knew our respective roles within the triad. My role was always silent, because when it came to mental feats ... I outpaced both of them by a wide margin." The locust turns his head up to match his visor's apparent gaze to Buzzkill's. "I read Scorn like an open book from the first few moments I spent with her. She is of moderate intellect, relies heavily on her sensuality to gain a foothold for manipulation and she has an avarice for power that does not match her capability. She hungers for targets bigger than her jaws can handle. She is, of course, attempting to charm me as much as possible, and for the sake of observing her and peeling away the layers of her psyche, I have played along with her little game. I'm just as capable of whoring myself for power, advantage or prestige, but unlike Scorn, I really don't give a damn about how it makes me look, so long as I can find a handhold in my target to grasp hold of." "I agree with you on unification. The present state of the Insecticons I see is appallingly fractious and disharmonious. Scorn's lust for power is a wild spring of energy that needs to be tapped and redirected towards more beneficial purposes. She either needs the illusion of control to settle her, or she needs to be psychologically destroyed and rebuilt. The former will allow us only a tenuous hold at best, so long as we can keep up the facade. The later will be more intensive and require more effort, and may not be palatable to our superiors." Out of the original three. Kickback was always Buzzkill's favorite though she couldn't ever describe why. After hearing him speak like this, she finally knows.. The honey bee can't help but grin, a strange and unsettling expression not usually seen on her often surly face. She lowers her head, the visor of her hard hat covering her optic visor, that grin on her face growing wider and wider, a quiet laugh slipping out of her vocalizer. Within seconds she's throwing her head back, that quiet laugh now a booming maniacal guffaw that echos through the workshop. "Hahahahahahaha! Yes! YES!" She slams her hands on her desk and leans over it, staring at Kickback with an almost crazed look plastered on her face. "i knew it.. I always knew it. There was something about you, something the books never mentioned but I could tell.. You're special, and I love it. The way you put on this mask of aloofness but are always watching, always analyzing everything, storing it away in your own mind for later use, the way you think it's.. it's.." She flops back down in her chair, an almost satisfied sigh escaping her. "It's just so refreshing. Finally, an Insecticon I can consider an intellectual equal. Yes.. yes.. I love your ideas, but how do we pull it off? That is the real question. Letting her believe she is in a position of control seems good but can backfire easily. Breaking her down and rebuilding her is far more exciting but even more difficult than the former. She can be a tough nut to crack and-" Buzzkill returns to her usual demeanor, a scowl etched on her face. "-due to previous.. encounters, I suppose you could call them, I am unable to intimidate her into doing what I'd like." There is the faint scratching of low-quality audio as Buzzsaw's vocal emitters issue forth a chuckle, a voice matching them shortly after. It's almost akin to listening to someone talk over a PA system. A bad one. **Of course, tearing down something and rebuilding it is why you go to a specialist of the trade, you know. Fortunately, the Decepticons have numerous capable of doing so. Tell me... Is Scorn as nonfunctioning as you truly make her out to be?** There's a soft click as the audio ceases. Stealthy suppression systems still remain engaged, but the burning red optics give his position in the shadows away all the same. "I am a specialist in the trade," Kickback replies coolly. He doesn't look up to the sound of the voice, the voice is familiar enough, and there are only a few capable of hiding so well, and in such a small space. Even fewer are inclined to spy regularly on other Decepticons for what appears to be nothing more than a whim. "Scorn has the capability to be a very valuable part of the Insecticon hive," the locust states. "But at present her constant in-fighting with Buzzkill is a greater detriment to the operations of the Decepticons than the meritorious goal of individual advancement through conquest. It is a delicate balance to maintain: keeping the fires of the army stoked and hungry to leap on any opportunity for power or gain. Certainly, to be effective soldiers, they must be fed only enough to keep them hungry, to keep their predatory instincts sharp; but in doing so, you always run the risk of creating a beast strong enough to turn on you and eat you alive." "Scorn is only loose and unruly because she has never been properly brought to heel. I don't fault you for this, Buzzkill, because what it will take to leash and collar her is not something you can give. Your focus should be freed for more necessarily scientific endeavors, medical work or engineering design - not in worrying over which of your underlings are going to try to put a knife in your back to get ahead of you," Kickback states, addressing the honeybee across from him, before refocusing on the unknown voice that has decided to eavesdrop. "The Decepticons have many specialists in interrogation, torture and psychological dismemberment, but they lack expertise in a particular type of reformatting: They don't speak the language of love, friendship and social bonding. This is something organics and Autobots fairly ooze, and it is a language I speak as if native born to it. Scorn is a social creature, and for her kind, there are no weightier chains than those one willingly snaps around one's heart." Buzzkill is far less okay with being spied on. Once the voice speaks up, her attention snaps to it's source, the Insecticon making out the two glowing red lights that are Buzzsaw's optics. "Nnng.. filthy bird. This is a private conversation!" She grabs a hunk of metal off her desk that probably belonged to one of the Insecticlones before she killed it out of frustration and chucks it as hard as she can in Buzzsaw's direction. Whether she actually strikes him or not is irrelevant, she just wanted to make a point that he is not welcome to spy on her conversations, especially if Scorn is involved. The last thing Buzzkill wants is Scorn catching wind of their plans. Back to Kickback, the honey bee sighs and rubs the side of her head with two of her fingers as if massaging a headache away. "Hn, I'm glad you understand my plight. It's extremely frustrating and stressful to have to be constantly looking over my shoulder to keep that little skank from sinking her knife into my back and taking my place as Commander." Though Buzzkill would never admit it, she knows she's not capable of leading an army but there's no way in hell she wants to give Scorn the satisfaction of beating her. She drops her hand onto her desk and taptaptaps away at it with her fingers. "So, Kickback, what are you suggesting? Working your way into that cold heart of hers and destroying her from the inside?" There's that weird little smirk again. "..Because that's actually a great idea. You see, despite our differences, Scorn and I are quite close in the sense she knows certain things about me no one else does... and vice versa. There was a time in her life where she was deeply in love but of course, as these stories often go, she had her heartbroken and has been unable to obtain those feelings ever since." "If you were to win her heart and then crush it in your hands... then you could break her harder than she has ever been in millions of years.." **If that is true, Kickback, then what shall you do? Enact a sort of, oh...what is the earth-bound term, Stockholm syndrome? Get her addicted to you and parade her about as your puppet? While amusing to consider, there are other means.** Buzzsaw deftly sidesteps, but otherwise does not move. The crimson optics turn to focus on Buzzkill. **The problem with you, Buzzkill, is that you do not quite understand that I am on /your/ side. I want a Decepticon force that is capable, strong, united...and weak links in the chain need to be fixed. So I am merely offering my assistance in the matter. You may not appreciate that...but then, at the end of the day, I do not care what you appreciate. I have a job to do.** Kickback leans back in his chair, and places his hands on the armrests. "Indulge me then, what would you do to gain control of Scorn and refocus her into something useful?" he asks the set of optics. "Because my goal is, simply and openly, to unify the Insecticons. To make certain we all understand our roles, how we overlap, where our weaknesses are and how to defend against them, where are strengths and talents are best used. Shrapnel and Bombshell are ... still out there, somewhere. If we find them... if we can free them ... we will need an existing "net" of team-focused Insecticons to subsume their eccentricities." He turns to Buzzkill. "If Shrapnel were here, you would have far deeper concerns for your safety in leadership than Scorn *ever* gave you cause for." "In my experience, you can physically beat and batter a Decepticon to your heart's content and usually it keeps them in line but over time you need to hit them harder and harder lest they get used to it. Some, like Scorn-" And to the same extent, Buzzkill herself though she would NEVER admit to being vulnerable to emotional or psychological manipulation and abuse. "They need a different approach." She snorts at Buzzsaw. "And despite my utter disdain of being spied on, I do think Buzzsaw is on point. If I could do it myself, I would but I'm not exactly Scorn's type. You need to gain her friendship, have her trust you completely, have her share with you her deepest darkest and then use it against her. I want you to make her suffer, and I mean absolutely suffer. I want her to hit rock bottom, I want her to wallow in a bottomless pit of despair and consider self deactivation. Then, and only then. when she is at her weakest can we shape her into the soldier we need her to be." Buzzkill leans back and crosses a leg over her knee. "Do you think you are capable of handling such a task, Kickback?" The condor shuffles in place, towards that piece of scrap that was thrown at him. **What I would do? Nothing as bland or trivial as beatings. Rather, complex reformatting. After all, the insecticons thrive on unity, yes? However, loyalty through...false adoration, or even addiction to the social attention you claim will suffice, means that Scorn serves one. You. Not the greater whole. This is flawed.** Picking up the piece of metal in a talon, he looks it over carefully. **When treated correctly, though, the central processor is phenomenally receptive to suggestion as far as what is important. Though, the process is delicate, but oh-so-rewarding.** The piece of metal is dropped, clattering to the floor. **You see, it is not a Queen, nor a servant of the Queen, that Scorn needs to love. Scorn needs to love the Hive. Careful suggestion through sensory deprivation, reinforcing incorrect actions or response through severe pain, and rewarding correct response through minor pain, all work together to reformat thought processes.** The voice being emitted through the condor's on-board speaker clears its throat. **Eventually, thought is reprogrammed in full. Slowly, sensory input is restored, but still treated to the same careful treatment of stimulated reinforcement until, finally, the subject is at last convinced of what you have instructed them is truth. That the Hive is their all. Loyalty is near absolute, and failure is feared.** Kickback takes it all in and processes it for a moment. Buzzsaw is preaching to the choir in terms of what needs to be done; the locust knows how to manipulate others and reshape them, but he says nothing, leaving the impression that he is trying to retain all this for later use. With the cassette present, the mask comes partially back up. He lets the bird "educate" his "inexperience". Of course the truth of the matter is that yes, he DOES want Scorn to answer to him; someone has to be the overmind of the swarm, after all, and he intends for that to tip in his favor, even if that means being the silent force behind a more visible throne... just like the old days. "This does, of course, play into what I said when I talked in terms of unity," he says after weighing the choice of certain words. He lines up a subtle push at the bird. "I am capable of assessing the value of an individual and acting on that value to bring that individual into the best possible use for the mission at hand. After all, when Shrapnel was overcome by arrogance after we devoured the Nova Power core, and Bombshell wanted to play games ... I was the one who saw the tremendous value in keeping Soundwave broken and subservient to my will." The faintest fraction of a smile plays across his silver face. Buzzsaw just chuckles softly. **Be mindful what you say, Kickback. Some owners of the optics and auditory processors around here are very quick to yell 'traitor' for certain remarks.** The condor's optics blink once. **Do as you see fit, Buzzkill. As with all things, though, I shall observe. I do hope that you find success, though.** The condor turns to depart, engines humming to life. **After all, I will never turn down the opportunity to work on one of you insects. You can thank Kickback's activities regarding Soundwave for that one.** The condor steps off the table, gliding until engines kick in full to carry him on his way. Honestly, Buzzkill doesn't care what Kickback's ulterior motives are or how he goes about reaching them. All she cares about is making Scorn feel as awful as she's made her feel all this time. "Yes, yes, these are all great ideas. I leave it up to you, Kickback, to use your best judgement on how break and rebuild Scorn. I trust that you will get the job done." Kickback just keeps smiling; the push was risky but it paid off in the end. The fact that he had enough momentum to make any push at all is a fantastic sign, at least, as far as he sees it. "Tactical advantages are tactical advantages," he dismissively comments. Buzzkill has already returned to scribbling hexagons all over her blueprints like some kind of hexagon possessed cultist. "I'm glad we could have this talk, Kickback, and I'm proud to have you part of the team again. As far as I'm concerned, there is no doubt about your loyalties to the Empire and I will pass it along that I approve of your return to us. "I look forward to serving you, Ma'am," Kickback replies. He adds, in a somewhat sly, flirty manner, "... In any way you choose." Buzzkill pauses what she's doing and sloooowly lifts her head to stare at Kickback. Is she..is she getting hit on? By Kickback, of all robots? "I uh.." She's not really sure how to react and it's clear that she's flustered by the way she clears her throat and quickly returns her gaze to her blueprints. "I'll keep that in mind.."